Platform shoe



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Patented Nov.y 26, 1946 Iiff?UNITED STATES PATENT oPFlcE 2,411,682 PLATFoRM sn'oE Sebastiano Gallo, Brooklyn, N. Y. Application November 3, 1944, Serial No. 561,647/u Claims. (Cl. Sti-19.5)

This invention. relates to shoes and methods of making shoes, particularly those of the platformtype. v

Such shoes have the platform covered with material, Ijfor example cloth or pliant leather, which is preferably connected at its upper end with the lower portion of the shoe upper, as for example the vamp in the case o f an open-shank, open-heel slipper which has a half-platform, that is, a platform that extends only as far as the shank. making platform shoes, knownl as the California process or slip last method, the upper and the wrapper which is to cover the sides of the SinceV platform are stitched to ka sock lining. I the bottom edges of the upper would extend under the 'lining only, there being no` insole, it is necessary "to trim these'bottom` edges olf very close to the stitching and this reduces the strength of the connection so that when subsequent pull comes on the wrapper it sometimes happens that the wrapper tears loose from the upper. Thelack of an insole causes shoes made by the slip last method to lose their shape easily. Aside from these practical disadvantages, the method of assembly employed by the slip last method` involves considerable labor of askilled type and the process is therefore expensive.

It is. an object of this invention to provide animproved method of making platform shoes, and to provide .a construction in which a strong connection is obtained between the shoe upper and the wrapper, and an insole is combined with In one of the popular methods of tion can be made quickly and with less skill, and though the nal finishing of the shoe is preferably done on a last, the simplified step of connecting the upper with the insole effects substantial economles of manufacture. I have found that the markings employed in the process of my patent, above referred to, can be employed also as guides for stitching to an upper the Wrapper necessary for covering the sides of a platform,

and that the process is ideally suited to the production of shoes of the platform type.

" Another feature of the invention, thatvcan be used either with or without the process of'my patent, -relates to the connecting of the sock lining to the lining of the upper and to the wrapper that covers the sides of the platform.

Other objects, features and advantages will appear or be ceeds.

In the drawing, forming a part hereof, in which like reference characters indicate corresponding parts in all the views,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an open-toe, open-back slipper made in accordance with this invention, with parts broken away, and other parts in section to illustrate the construction.

Figure 2 is .an enlarged, fragmentary, sectional view illustrating certain details of the construction shown in Figure'l.

this connection' to keep the shoes in shape and prevent the wrapper that covers the platform from tearing loose. lAnother objectisto Provide a method for making shoes in which theirisole can be covered with a sock lining extending around the edges of the insole, before the shoe is lasted. According to one feature of this. invention, the Iupper ismarked to indicate the line along which the wrapper should be connected to the lower portion of the upper, and the connection is made while the upper is "in a flat condition and before it is connected with any portion of the sole or sock lining. Y n

Another object of the inventionis to provide an improved method for n1akiig.,platfo1jmshoes by a process that 'employs the method of assembly describedinlin'y Patent No. 2,353,396, issued July 11, 1944.l now Reissue 22,667. This patent discloses a method for making shoes in which the uppers are marked and connected with the insole along the" lines indicated by such markings, and without the use of a last. The connec- Figure 3 is a reduced scale perspective view of a full-platform sandal made in accordance with this invention.

The slipper shown in Figure 1 includes an insole I0 which is preferably covered with a sock lining II. or leather, extends around the edges of the insole and has its margins cemented tothe under 4surface of lthe vvinsole I0.

The thicknesses of the material shown in Figure 1 is necessarilyexaggerated where shown in section inv order t`o illustrate -the construction 'clearly. In Figure 2, inwhich the structure is shown on a much larger scale, the relative thickness of the different materialsy is shown. The :slipper has an upper comprising a vamp or vamp portion I3 and a strap portion Il that passes around theheel of the wearer. The bottom portion ofhtheqvamp I3 extends around the edgesof the insole I0 and is cemented to the bottom of the insole over the edges of the liningnl I. vThe platform I5 islocated directly underglthe insole I0, and the bottomof the platform is riovered byanoutsole .16. .'ll'hesides ot the platform I5 are covered by wrappenwhich has its upper end connected to the vamp I3 by stitching 2|!l pointed out as the description pro- This lining, which is usually of cloth which passes through the wrapper and through the lower portion of the vamp along the line, or preferably just inside the line where the vamp bends inward under the insole I0. The bottom edge 2I of the wrapper extends around the bottom of the platform and is cemented to the lower surface of the platform. The outsole I6 covers the entire bottom surface of the platform I and is cemented to the bottom surface of the platform and the wrapper edge portion 2l.

The upper has a lining 22 which extends down the bottom level of the insole I0. The lining 22 may have its bottom edge turned under the outside face of the insole and cemented to the insole like the sock lining without being stitched to the sock lining, but in the preferred embodiment of the invention, the lining 22 is secured to the sock lining Il by stitching 23 and the bottom may be folded under the insole or trimmed off along the bottom edge of' the insole so that the lining does not have to be turned in under the insole. This connection is made before the sock lining is put on the insole ID, and the inner lining 22 is preferably trimmed off even withl the bottom of the yinsole after the sock lining is cemented to the insole. The-stitching along the line where the lining 22 of the upper meets the sock lining II is similar to the shoes made by the California process or slip last method but has an important advantage over such shoes in that there is an insole for holding the shoe to its proper shape.

The slipper has a conventional shank stiffener 24, and heel 25 which are connected to the sole in a manner well understood in the art.- Although the slipper illustrated in Figure 1 `has a half platform, it will be understood that the invention can be applied to full platform shoes,

that is, shoes in which the platform extends for the full length of the sole such as the sandal shown in Figure 3.

In the manufacture of the slipper illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, markings are employed', as in my patent already referred to, for indicating how much of the bottom portion of the vamp should be turned under the insole I0. These markings may be applied to either the ins'lde surface of the vamp. or the bottom surface of the insole. Figure 2 shows markings 26 along the inside of the vamp. Such markings are used for open toe footwear, and when applying the upper to'the insole, the upper is placed in position so that the markings 26 extend along the bottom corner of the insole where the upper should be bent inward for connection to the insole.

When shoes are to be assembled in this manner, some stiifening element is required for holding the insole to the proper shape. A stiff plate is preferably used on the inside surface of the insole to hold it to the desired shape while the upper is being connected to it as in my patent referred to above. Such a plate preferablyextends across almost the full width of the insole but it is not essential that the plate be of such width. Narrower plates can be used, even plates as narrow as the shank stiffeners commonly employed for holding a shank portion of a sole to correct shape.

When connecting the upper to the insole; the stiffening plate is preferably connected to the insole by tacks or clamps to hold the insole to the desired shape of the finished shoe. The portion of the upper ahead ofthe shank is connected to the insole by bending the bottom portion of the upper inward in accordance with the markings on the upper or insole. The bottom face of the insole against which the edge portions of the upper are to be pressed is coated with cement, as described in myl patent, so that when v the bottom edge portion of the upper is positioned on the insole, it will be connected to the insole by the adhesive effect of the. cement. After the front part of the shoe, that is, the part ahead of the shank, has been lasted by using the stiffening plates, or any other stiffening element for holding the insole to the shape of the last, the stiffening element is removed and the shoe is put on a last to complete the lasting of the shank in the regular way and to finish the shoe completely.

Figure 1 shows the bottom portion of the vamp I3 broken away to expose markings 2B on the bottom surface of the insole I0. When such markings are employed, the shoe is assembled by turning in theA bottom portions of the vamp I3 until the edges lie along the markings 28, the location of these markings being coordinated with the size of the vamp and width of the insole so that when the bottom edges of the vamp are in register with the markings 28, the vamp is properly located on the shoe. As in the case of marked uppers, the insole is held to the desired shape by aplate or other stiffening means during the time th'at the bottom portion of the vamp is being positioned with respect to theA markings 28.

The wrapper I6 is connected to the vamp I3 while the vamp is still in a flat condition or in any event before the vamp is connected to the insole I0 or sock lining II. The wrapper I8 and vamp I3 can be stitched together from either side. The stitching is located approximately Il; inch lower on the vamp than the markings 26 so that the stitches will not show when the upper is bent inward along the line of the markings 26. A mark may be drawn along the proposed line of the stitching as a guide for the stitcher who sews the wrapper to the upper. The wrapper and vamp may be placed in a sewing machine and stitched with the markings 26 as a guide. in this case the stitching is from the inside of the vamp. Instead of using the markings 26 to guide the stitching operation, other markings 29 can be applied to the outside surface of the vamp for guiding the stitching. Since the wrapper IB covers the markings 29, it is necessary to put the wrapper down progressively ahead of the needle when stitching from the outside along external markings 29 as a guide.

The platform I5 may be made of cork or wood, or various other materials and need not be solid.

The process described in my patent is used with open-toe open-back, and sandal footwear, and there is. therefore, a portion of the Wrapper I8 that cannot be stitched to the upper. It is a feature of this invention that any unstitched portions of the wrapper, such as the tab 3| which extends across the gap in the vamp at the open toe of the-slipper, is of substantial length and turned in and attached, as by cementing, to the bottom of the insole. This prevents the unstitched portion of the wrapper from becoming displaced or possibly pulling out from between the insole and the platform. y

Figure 3 shows another type of footwear to which the invention is applied comprising a sandal 33 with straps Il, a heel 35, and a platform 36 that extends under the full length of the sandal. All of the constructions herein described can be applied ,to both half platform and full platform shoes and can be usedwith the lining eitherstitched to the sock lining or not, as previously described.

When the sock lining is stitched to the lining 22, the shoe can be made on a last, or the shoe can be lasted as described in my patent, above referred to, but when the lining 22 is not stitched to the sock lining but turned underl the insole I and cemented, the shoe is lasted without a last by the method disclosed in my patent.

In place of a stiiening plate for holding the insole to the desired shape while the upper is being attached, the parts may be put on a last and a steel shank, piece of stiff leather, or a piece of wood or metal orother material may be attached to the bottom or top of the insole for holding it to the desired shape. After such stiftening means have been attached the insole can be removed from the last and the upper attached as already described.

The preferred embodiment of the invention has been described, butchanges and modifications can be made. and some features of the invention can be used without others, without departing from the-invention as dened inthe claims.

lI claim as my invention: y i

l. A shoe including an insole, a sock lining covering the insole and attached thereto, an upper extending around the edges of the insole and having its bottom portion secured to the in- "sole, a platform sole beneath the insole, and a wrapper for the sides of the platform, said wrapper being attached to the shoe above the platform'" byl stitching. that passes through only the portions extending ,for some distance across the bottom of the insole, and secured in place by cement, a wrapper stitched to the upper, and only to the upper, adjacent the line where the upper bends under the insole, said wrapper having edges that extend for a substantial distance beyond the stitching and back from the edge of the insole across the open toe, the edge of the wrapper across the open toe, where there is no stitching, being turned in vand cemented to the bottom of the insole, a platform located beneath .the insole and having sides covered by the wrapper, said wrapper being-tumed under the bottom face of the platform, and an outsole covering said insole andA across a kportion` outside surface of the insole, a lining for an upper stitched to the the bottom portion of the upper tunis inward for connection with the insole, said wrapper extending downward over the platform and being turned in and attached at its bottom edge to the lower surface of the platform, and an outsole covering the outside surface of the platform and the bottom edge portion of the wrapper.

4. The method of making a platform shoe with an insole, which method comprises stitching a lining for an upper to a sock lining for an insole, the stitching being located along a line of the sock lining that corresponds with the inner edge of the insole, then placing the sock lining on an insole with the edge portions of the sock lining extending around the edges of the insoleand under the outside surface of the insole for a substantial distance, cementing the edge portions of the sock lining to the insole, trimming the lining for the upper along a line even with the outer face of the insole, connecting an upper to the insole by bending the bottom portions of the upper inward under the outside surface of 'the insoleand connecting the upper tothe insole by cementing said bottom portion to the outside face of the insole, and thereafter applying a platform and an outsole to the shoe.

5. The method of making platform shoes that have an insole and wrapper connected with a shoe upper that has markings for indicating the line along which the upper is to be bent under the insole when lasting theyshoe, and that have the wrapper covering the sides of the platform,

- which method comprises stitching the wrapper bottom face and the portion of the wrapper that extends under said bottom face.

3. A shoe comprising an insole covered with a v sock lining that extends around the edges of the -to the upper adjacent said markings along which the upper is to be bent under the insole, attaching the upper to the insole by holding the insole to the shape of a last while turning in the bottom portion of the upper along said markings across the edge portions of the bottom face of the insole, securing said bottom portion of the upper to the insole, applying a platform below the insole, drawing the wrapper over the sides of the platform, turning the bottom edges of the wrapper inward over the outer face of the platform, securing the wrapper tothe platform, and thereafter covering the outside face of the plat form with an outsole.

sEBAsTrANo GALLO. 

